How It Was Supposed To Be
by light.in.the.blackness
Summary: Neville is just finding out that he might possibly have feelings for Luna. Does she feel the same way? Multi-chap fic, work in progress. Count the Starkid references! T for language
1. Chapter 1

AN- I just want to say thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, and faved my first ever fic. Yay! Also, reviews make me happy. This is based on my personal experiences, albeit loosely. May become multi-chap because I have an idea, depends on feedback.

Overly Disclaiming Disclaimer- J.K. Rowling owns her characters and story. I only own what my crazy mind comes up with.

How It Was Supposed To Be

"Hey, Longbottom, when are you and Loony Lovegood going to finally get together?" Even without turning to see him, Neville knew who asked the question by that damned drawling voice behind it. In Neville's opinion, the way Draco talked was one of the most bothersome things about him. One of them, mind you, for there were many other contributing factors.

"Get out of my face, Malfoy," Harry replied, knowing well that Neville never had the courage to stand up to his Slytherin tormenter.

"I don't believe I was talking to you, Potter. And speaking of my original question, where's your blood traitor girlfriend?" Draco continued to sneer at the two Gryffindors, knowing Luna and Ginny were very sensitive subjects to them.

However horrible he was, Draco Malfoy was not someone Neville or Harry ever wanted to pick a fight with. If it didn't result in injuries from his gorilla-like goons Crabbe and Goyle, it resulted in multiple detentions from Professor Snape. Even considering Neville's irrational fear of Snape, Lucius Malfoy's involvement was even worse. In fact, Draco often finished an argument with the very final words, _my father _will_ hear about this. _Those words made one's blood run cold, and instilled an ever lurking sense of fright.

"We'll be off to breakfast now," Neville said with finality and a mysterious level of confidence that even he didn't know he possessed.

As he and Ron stepped into the Great Hall, his mind wandered dangerously to what Draco had said. _Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood, together. _Well, not his words exactly, but the idea behind all of the spiteful remarks and jokes. Despite Neville's (and almost all of Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff's) hatred of Draco, he liked the idea of himself and Luna together. Everyone thought they were dating anyway because of how much time the pair spent in each other's company. Neville and Luna were the best of friends, but nothing more had happened. _Yet, _Neville thought to himself as he reached for a piece of toast and nibbled on it half-heartedly.

Walking through the halls after breakfast, Neville nearly ran into a group of first years before being pulled aside by Hermione.This sort of recklessness was expected from Neville, as he was rather large and clumsy, but Hermione knew something was wrong.

"Neville!" Hermione said sharply. Neville knew by her tone that that had not been the first time she called his name in order to get his attention.

"Bloody hell Hermione, what do you want?" He asked in reply. Seeing how crestfallen she looked at his answer, Neville knew he had said the wrong thing. "Sorry, you scared the shit out of me. What did you say?"

"Well-" _Oh here we go again, _Neville thought. "You didn't say a word at breakfast. You barely ate half a piece of dry toast. You just seem out of it, and I want to know what is wrong with you." What the devil was going on with Neville? Not even he could figure it out.

"Just thinking, Hermione. I'm fine, I swear. And I will tell you if there actually is anything wrong with me." Hermione seemed a bit skeptical of his answer at first, but Neville was able to convince her to get to class. Assuring her that he would be in common room didn't hurt either.

It helped to sway Hermione, but knowing that he would be left alone with only his thoughts was Neville's biggest fear. Not even detention with Snape or receiving an F in potions rivaled having to think at that moment. _Well, that's just bloody fantastic, isn't it? Snap out of it already, damn it! What the bloody hell is wrong with you-_

"Neville!" Luna exclaimed excitedly as she saw him. Suddenly Neville realized why he was so caught up in his own thoughts. It was her that he was thinking about; Luna Lovegood was like a wrackspurt to him. Or was it a nargle? "How have you been, Neville? I haven't heard from you since you last letter. Of course it's only the third day of term, and seeing as we're not only in different houses, but in different years, it's not much of a surprise. So, how are you? You seem rather distraught, what are you thinking of?"

_Shit, _Neville thought. _She can see right through me, it's like she's reading my thoughts._ "Hello, Luna. I've been fine, helping Gran out with garden all summer, mostly. And I guess I'm just tired, did you know Hermione asked me the exact same thing this morning? Actually, I was just going off to the common room now."

"Well I would love to catch up with you. If that's okay with you, of course, seeing as we're both free this period." Luna looked up at Neville through her eyelashes, as he was considerably taller than she was. He noticed the constant sparkle in her eyes, and the way her long blond hair curled beautifully around her face before cascading down her back. Neville realized, in that moment, that spending time with Luna would be a horrible idea. Not only for his thoughts, but for her as well, seeing as he could not stare at her and keep on a reasonable conversation at the same time. Every time he saw her, he got these pains in his chest, and he knew it was she who caused it.

"Oh, um, o-of course, sure, I would love to. Would you prefer Ravenclaw or Gryffindor tower?" _Great job, Longbottom_, Neville slapped himself internally. _You've made yourself seem like more of a damn inarticulate bumble than you already are._

"Gryffindor, considering some of my… less friendly roommates have this period off." Neville's fists clenched as he thought of how horrible people could be. They called her Loony, called him too many different names to count. One of Draco's latest favorites was "Schlongbottom."

"That's… totally awesome. Well, we have a lot to catch up on. Coming, Luna?"


	2. Chapter 2

AN- I saw something online that I thought was hilarious. Spoiler Alert- Ginny lets Harry name the kids.

I still disclaim- I own nothing.

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 2

The good thing about Luna Lovegood was that she could talk damn near forever and never, ever, grow tired of it. This came in handy especially when the person she was talking to was either uninterested in the conversation or thought she was terminally insane. That was the case most of the time; with the few exclusions being Hermione, Ron, Harry, Ginny, and Neville, of course.

Luna wasn't particularly sure what she thought of Neville Longbottom just yet. They were friends, best friends even, but that seemed to just be it for the time being. Luna did know she liked Neville very much as a person, and also as her friend. Was there more lurking somewhere? She would have to look, perhaps underneath a staircase. Yes, a staircase did seem to be very appropriate. Although her feelings were less concrete than an object, Luna often found that finding out answers and finding stolen shoes and sweaters were nearly the same.

"So, essentially, wrackspurts are invisible little creatures. They float in through your ears and around in your head and make your brain go fuzzy. Nargles often live in mistletoe. But not very much is known about them other than that. Does that clear it up, Neville?" Neville looked up at the sound of his name, most likely unaware that he had even asked Luna a question at all.

"Oh, yes, I understand now. Thank you very much Luna," Neville could now almost complete a sentence in Luna's presence, something she had obviously no problem with at all. However, he never remembered asking her anything about nargles or wrackspurts. At least now he knew that Luna seemed to act like his personal wrackspurt, although he would not mind finding a nargle while with her, if they truly lived in mistletoe.

Neville listened to Luna talk and talk, but nothing she said was registering with him. _I know I'm just being so damn stupid_. _It does seem like she has feelings for me, though. Or maybe I'm just imagining this entire thing. I've heard so many people talk about Luna and me as a real _us._ I've heard so many people say that we belong together, that we're practically bloody perfect for each other. _

_But in reality, she's way out of my league. I'm not even sure I qualify to be in any league, seeing as the only girl I've ever kissed was Ginny after I took her to the Yule Ball, but I know she's been in love with Harry since she was ten. I'll never be good enough for Luna; she is so damn wonderful words can't describe it. She is simply stunning; inside and out, and there is not one word for it. Beautiful? No, more like… supermegafoxyawesomehot. Or, something related to that. But I'm just Neville; I'm like the ugly duckling, except I never turn into a swan. Just an ugly duckling. I'll always be a disappointment to Gran, never living up to my mother and father's standards, never truly being the son of such brave people._

Luckily, Neville had been paying enough attention to the real world, to the looming halls of Hogwarts that surrounded him, to notice that he and Luna had reached the portrait of the fat lady. He spoke the password and the painting swung open to reveal the Gryffindor common room. He led Luna to the couch directly in front of the fire that was usually occupied by Ron, Hermione, and Harry. It felt rather strange not to hear Hermione reading over Ron's essay and telling him everything that was wrong with it, before finally fixing it for him.

"Would you like a snack, Neville? I know we just ate breakfast, but I do believe Hermione told me that you barely ate anything at all. And I'm in the mood for something sweet." _Thanks, Hermione, _Neville thought. In fact, Neville was quite hungry. He could have tried to convince Luna otherwise, but she could always tell when he lied. _She would make a bloody excellent divination teacher._ And the rumbling noises coming from his stomach wouldn't have helped that lie very much. "Well, it sounds like your stomach does. Want a redvine?"

"What the devil is a redvine?" Neville inquired as he took the treat and waved it around almost as if he was trying to figure out a rather difficult spell in Charms. It was sort of like a floppy red wand, he decided, except the candy was far shorter and rather sticky.

"It's a kind of muggle treat. They really are quite good, actually. Sort of like licorice wands, if you would like something as a comparison," Luna explained as she watched Neville wave the red treat around. When she first was offered a redvine by a boy that lived in the village near her house, she was also a bit skeptical, though far less than Neville was now. But then she tried it, and Luna Lovegood instantly had a new favorite snack.

Neville took a very small and cautious bite out of one of the ends, and his eyes went wide suddenly.

"OH MY GOD! Where have you been all my life?" Luna laughed as Neville instantly devoured the rest of his redvine, promptly grabbing another from the plastic bag she had earlier pulled from her schoolbag. Luna decided that Neville was quite hilarious when he was so excited. Then again, it was hard for her to think of Neville as more than a good friend. "Hilarious," however, is most likely not a word you use for someone you want to be in a relationship with. Did she want to be in a relationship with Neville? Luna had always been in control of herself, and she was fairly sure she was just fine with the way they were. Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood, destined to be best friends forever.

"Eat it Schlongbottom!"


	3. Chapter 3

AN- No reviews for chapter two yet, that made me very sad. Reviews make me want to write, hint, hint. Ranting done, this is really far off from my true story that this is based on. And it just keeps drifting further away …

I solemnly swear that I… do not own Harry Potter.

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 3

There were rumors about what had happened that day in Gryffindor tower. As was the case with most rumors, none were true. However, they were vicious, especially the few that started in the Slytherin common room by one Draco Malfoy.

"Well, of course they did, Crabbe. Honestly, are you and Goyle actually as stupid as you look? There is absolutely no other explanation to why Schlongbottom and Loony Lovegood were up in Gryffindor tower, completely _alone._ It's not that hard to figure out, really, even for you two dimwits. The only thing that seems off is that somehow Schlongbottom is not going to be dying a virgin."

"What is your fucking problem Malfoy? Leave Neville alone, he's never done anything to you," Ron's every word was full of hatred, anger, and protectiveness for Neville's sake. All of Gryffindor was on Neville's side, and so by default, on Luna's as well.

"Oh look, weasel here uses big boy words now, better watch out. Never forget, nothing you say changes what you are. You, and your entire family, are and will always be just a bunch of filthy blood traitors." Malfoy stood strong; though he was incredibly thankful Crabbe and Goyle were there beside him.

"What I am, are you joking? At least I'm not you, Malfoy. At least I can fight without two damn gorilla goons to protect me and a powerful father to run to when I'm scared. I hear there's a hidden swimming pool here in Hogwarts, go drown in it and do all of us a favor." Just as Draco was about to throw a punch in Ron's direction, Snape intervened.

"What the devil is going on here?" Snape asked, quickly looking over the scene unfolding before him. On one side were Neville, Ron, Harry, and Hermione. On the other side, Crabbe, Goyle, Blaise, and Draco, the smaller two flanked by the larger two.

With a quick sweep of his robes and a muttered "My father will hear about this," Draco's side of the fray was gone.

"I hear that Mr. Malfoy has been the source of quite a few… malicious rumors. Is this true?"

"Yes, professor, it's been endless for a week now." Hermione explained, sensing that none of the others wanted to clarify the situation. She was also the least involved, as Ron had yelled at Malfoy and Neville was the victim of the rumors. Harry was also as uninvolved as he could be, but Snape seemed to dislike Harry the most out of the foursome.

"Well, even though that may be so, Mr. Weasely here still had intent on starting a fight. Ten points will be taken from Gryffindor." The four Gryffindors were angered at this, as Malfoy had started all of it in the first place. However, they were incredibly relieved that Snape hadn't wiped them completely clean of house points. With that, Snape stalked off to the dungeons to prepare for that day's lessons.

"Thank you guys, honestly. Especially you Ron, there is no way I could have ever stood up to Malfoy like that," Neville said to his feet as the group of Gryffindors walked into the Great Hall towards their house table.

Neville could not express in words how glad he was to have friends that would always be there to defend him. He knew that Luna was probably going through just what he was right now, but she only had him for support. And if he tried to comfort her, it only resulted in catcalls and more lies being spread around the school. As he looked over to the Ravenclaw table to find her, she met his eyes and smiled.

She was so much stronger than he ever could hope to be, much braver, more courageous. It seemed that Luna belonged in Gryffindor just as much as Neville did, if not more. At least if she was in Gryffindor instead of Ravenclaw he could see her in the common room, and just maybe, make those rumors true. _Damn it Neville, you're just friends!_ If he thought about it, Luna did act like she returned his feelings sometimes. Maybe he was imagining it, and maybe Luna didn't realize she had led Neville on to a point of no return.

Luna was very pleasantly surprised when she saw Neville look over at the Ravenclaw table. She knew nothing that had happened was either of their faults, but it was hard not seeing her best friend. It had been a week since the pair had decided staying away from each other for a while should kill the rumors. It had been a week since she had laughed with Neville, shared a redvine with him, and simply enjoyed his company. It was killing her not to be with Neville and considering they had no classes together, she could barely see him at all.

Simply put, Neville was her only friend. Well, her only best friend, anyway. She had Ginny and Hermione, and that by default included Ron and Harry as well, but they weren't Neville. _Luna, it seems like your relationship is becoming less and less platonic._ But she didn't think of Neville that way at all. Luna Lovegood was sure of two things regarding Neville at that particular moment. One, she missed his company desperately, and she could never risk ruining their friendship.


	4. Chapter 4

AN- Keep the reviews coming? Fangirl moment- so excited for Pottermore! I will get in early, I'm determined. Sorry this took a while, had to rewrite the entire thing. In relation to my story, I would be Neville, but I originally wrote this chapter as Luna because she's the girl. Oopsies!

Still own nothing. (I'm new to fanfiction, do I have to put that on every chapter?)

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 4

Romilda Vane had been in love with Neville for a year now. She would never tell him, of course, but sometimes she just couldn't restrain himself. One day last year, as Romilda was walking to Defense Against the Dark Arts, she told Neville that he looked handsome. Neville, ever so polite, said a quick thank you and rushed off to avoid having to sit with her in class. She could tell from that moment that he would never feel the same way. Neville was not embarrassed by the compliment, although he was embarrassed by something almost all the time. He simply accepted it; although that was the first time someone had told Neville that she was anything but a clumsy failure.

Neville Longbottom knew Romilda fancied him. He had known for a year. With that, he had known for the same period of time that he did not return Romilda's feelings. Neville had barely met Luna back then, though he was introduced to her by Ginny at least once.

"_Hello, Neville. How are you today?" Romilda walked up to where he was lying on the ground, his eyes flitting incredibly quickly back and forth between a Herbology textbook and some sort of plant she couldn't identify._

"_Fine, Romilda, how about you?" Neville continued to stare at his plant, obviously very interested in the way that it was moving. Before Romilda had a chance to answer her question; Neville quietly mumbled something he couldn't hear._

"_What was that Neville?" _

"_Oh, I just now figured out how gillyweed allows you to breathe underwater!" When Romilda gave him a quizzical look, he continued. "It's nothing, just a little bit of extra credit I'm doing for Herbology" Neville had been quite excited at his discovery, but not many others shared his interest and skill for Herbology._

"_That's absurd, Neville! I actually wanted to ask you something. Ginny and I and a few others are going to have a little picnic. Would you like to come?" Romilda awaited his response, hoping he would say yes._

"_I would love to, Romilda. So who would the "few others" be?"_

_Romilda let out a breath she was not aware she had been holding, relieved Neville had accepted. "Yeah. Um, a few girls from Gryffindor and whoever else Ginny decided to ask." The two continued walking to a small tree near the lake. The area underneath it was occupied by a picnic blanket and basket and four girls sitting together eating chocolate frogs. _

_Neville was relieved to see that Ginny had invited Luna, even though she seemed out of place among the Gryffindors. While Romilda sat down to join Lavender, Ginny, and Cho Chang, Neville went to sit near Luna._

_Although she hadn't invited him, Neville found himself exclusively talking to Luna. Truthfully, he and Romilda had absolutely nothing in common, so, in turn, nothing to talk about. Neville understood Luna, however, partly because they had both gone through the experience of losing a parent. Neville and Luna, unlike Neville and Romilda, could talk to each other for hours and never be bored or run out of topics. She was especially entertaining today, telling a wonderfully creative story about a school on Mars called Pigfarts. "Rumbleroar's the headmaster at Pigfarts," Luna explained." He's a lion who can talk, and if you're a really good student, Rumbleroar lets you ride around on his back. But you need to remember to keep your spacesuit on at all times because, well, it's on Mars."_

"_That's absolutely fascinating Luna. How did you come up with that?" Neville had a look of pure wonder in his eyes, entranced by Luna's amazing storytelling and imagination._

"_Pigfarts is real you know. But I can't go there, because I'd need a rocket ship with enough fuel to get me to Mars."_

Neville knew that he had no feelings for Romilda. In fact, her clingy demeanor sort of freaked him out. So when they arrived at Gryffindor's unofficial Christmas party that was always held the day before winter holidays, he could not believe he had agreed to come with her.

_Holy shit, holy shit, I know she's in love with me. Damn it Longbottom, why the hell did you agree to this? You should've asked Luna, you actually want to be here with her. Not Romilda, not anyone but Luna. But it doesn't matter; she's come here with Seamus, and… oh, shit. Is she honestly dancing like that with Seamus Finnegan? Should I do the same with Romilda to make her jealous? No, she wouldn't get jealous, she wasn't jealous when you told her you agreed to go with Romilda Vane, of all people. Go ask her to dance, you inarticulate bumble!_

When Romilda went to the bathroom to touch up her makeup, Neville jumped at the chance. He nervously approached Luna, who was thankfully alone.

"Oh, hello Neville, how are you? Seamus has just gone to fetch us some punch, where's Romilda?"

"Romilda, oh, she's in the bathroom. Would you like to dance with me Luna?" A slow song had started playing only seconds before, and dancing couples were all around the pair.

"Don't you have a date, Longbottom?" Before Luna could answer Neville's question, Seamus grasped her hand and waist and started to dance. "Oh, I though you should know that the punch has squirt in it. Do you still want some?" Seamus's voice sounded so different when he was talking to Luna, much softer and gentler.

"Squirt? No, thank you, I'd rather stay dehydrated. But if you could find any butterbeer, I-"

"Say no more, Luna, I'll go find butterbeer." Seamus walked away in search of the drink.

"Well, Luna, this is the last song before winter holidays. May I have this dance?" Luna nodded quickly and took Neville's hand in her own, placing her opposite hand on his strong shoulder. He met her hand in his and lightly placed his other on her waist. Neville was far less forceful then Seamus had been, less aggressive and predatory. The pair swayed to the soft music, never feeling pressured despite the majority of the couples surrounding them were kissing. As they were forced to part they simply hugged and wished each other a happy Christmas.


	5. Chapter 5

AN- Typed this **entire** chapter, and then lost it. Anyone want to get me a functional computer? P.S. Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, faved, etc. I less than three you all! Keep it coming!

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 5

_What does it mean?_ _She danced with you, Neville. That's it, nothing more. Or is it? _

"Hello, Neville. How were your holidays?" He turned around slowly; knowing far too well who the dream-like voice belonged to. But he had to face Luna eventually, she had addressed him. And more importantly, asking Luna out was Neville's only resolution for the upcoming year.

"They were great. How were yours, Luna?" Neville noticed that Luna had started to wear her hair differently. It was shorter, reaching just past her shoulders. The curls framed her slender face beautifully, highlighting her blue-grey eyes. Her cheeks and lips were both slightly redder, flushed from the extremely cold conditions that were very common of platform 9¾ in January.

Although Neville had not realized it, Luna was halfway through her story before he had heard anything.

"Figment the imaginary dragon is just a rumor, of course. But dad and I are still determined to find Puff the magic dragon and the reluctant dragon. We're both sure that it will make a great special article for the _Quibbler_." Now that she mentioned it, Neville did remember Luna mentioning something about going abroad with her father to identify lesser known dragons over the holidays.

She had also mentioned that they were going to research little known facts about more well-known dragons over summer holidays. Neville loved how excited Luna seemed to be about the Hungarian Horntail, even though she had told him that it would most likely be the most terrifying thing she would ever see in her life. Neville wished that he could have the experiences Luna had, wished that he could see the world like she had. Through eyes that were always trusting, always completely in awe of everything that she saw, no matter how insignificant.

He sincerely hoped that no one would ever take that sense of wonder from Luna's beautiful eyes. She was like a child eagerly awaiting her presents from Santa, the sense of the best sort of magic most children experience only on holidays and birthdays constantly there.

Once they had boarded the Hogwarts Express with plans to sit next to each other, Ginny spotted Luna and pulled her away from Neville, mumbling something that he could not hear. He assumed Luna could, however, since she nodded before stepping inside the empty compartment.

"Sorry, Neville, do you mind if I borrow Luna for a bit of girl talk?" Although Ginny had asked Neville's permission, he knew much better than to refuse. Having more than once seen the effects of her highly feared Bat-Bogey hex, he simply nodded and turned to go find some of his friends that had gone home for the holidays to sit with.

Girl talk, Ginny could probably sense that Neville was desperately in love with Luna._ Maybe Ginny will tell her to snog me senseless so I can finally discover my Gryffindor courage. _As Neville sat down next to Seamus, he imagined what kissing Luna might be like.

_She would kiss him first, slowly leaning upwards until their lips met softly. It would be soft and tantalizingly slow at first, but quickly turn into a display of pure passion. Neville would take control after that, backing Luna up until he heard the _thud_ of her back hitting the wall. One hand would be on the wall beside Luna's head, the other splayed across her lower back, pressing their bodies close enough together to feel the body heat radiating even beneath layers of winter clothing. Luna's hands would be tangled in Neville's hair, her legs wrapped around his waist, her bare feet barely rubbing the inside of his thighs, dangerously close to… Shit, not the thing to be thinking about in a train compartment full of his friends and _roommates_. _Neville could savor the idea of Luna satisfying his hormone-raged needs when he was alone.

Although Ginny had quickly whispered her intentions as she led Luna away from Neville, Luna did know at all what to expect of the planned "girl talk" session. She did know that Ginny had been trying to set her up with a boyfriend for over two years now, and all of the dates had gone down in flames rather quickly. They all thought she was loony, for lack of a better word.

"What the devil is going on between you and Neville?" Ginny had shut both the door and the window shade, completely cutting their section of the train off from the rest.

"Nothing, we're just friends; I promise I would tell you if something else was happening." Even with this assurance, Ginny still seemed rather skeptical.

"What would you give him on a scale of one to ten, with one being the ugliest and ten being extremely handsome?"

"I would give him an eight, maybe eight point five, or even a nine. Not over a nine point eight, but there's always room for improvement. And what would you rate him, Ginny?"

"Doesn't matter what I think of him. I will tell you that no one is perfect, but I'm holding out for a ten, because I'm worth it. That's not important; I can see the way that he looks at you, Luna. He's in love with you, pining over you, haven't you noticed?" Luna looked doubtful, making it quite obvious that she had not noticed that Neville was thinking of her as more than a friend, more than _just Luna._

"No, I most certainly have not noticed Neville acting any different than he normally does." Luna was both shocked at this piece of news and slightly embarrassed that she had not noticed Neville's change in behavior.

"Luna, oh my Rowling, you are oblivious. Neville Longbottom has never exactly been _subtle_, and this is no exception. It might even be worse now; he is being so painfully obvious with his deepest feelings that it's kind of sad."

_His deepest feelings, they were being laid out for everyone to see. Could they really be for me? I'm "Loony" Lovegood, the freak with no friends beside Ginny and Schlongbottom. _I _was_ _being wanted so badly that I was the only one not aware of it. Wasn't I supposed to be in Ravenclaw? How could something so plainly in front of me go blissfully unseen by my observant eyes?_

"Neville has feelings for me? No way, Ginny… I'm… no, it couldn't be."


	6. Chapter 6

AN- Writing is honestly the greatest way to help you vent and force your own problems upon fictional characters. Sorry, angry bitch moment. Make me happy by reviewing! Leave any suggestions/thoughts to help me write, I'm fresh out of ideas.

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 6

"You never tell a girl you like her, it makes you look like an idiot!" Example A; this is why no one should ever try to get any romantic advice from Seamus Finnegan, ever. Neville knew better than to listen to Seamus, though he didn't technically have to. Seamus was giving his "help" to Dean at the moment. Neville was too damn preoccupied with his thoughts to care who Dean fancied now. Honestly, Dean found some new girl nearly once a week; it got quite old very quickly.

As is brought out on cue to save him from his roommates' seemingly endless banter, Ginny's face suddenly appeared in the window. She softly knocked twice on the glass before sliding the door to the compartment open and letting herself in.

"Luna has something to say to you, Neville, if you don't mind." _What could Luna possibly want to talk to me about? What did Ginny say to her?_

"Oh, of course, I'd… that's fine." As Neville made to get up from his seat, he heard catcalls from Dean and Seamus, and he could have sworn a _go get some, Longbottom_ was whispered.

Luna was reading the _Quibbler_ when Neville arrived. However, after sitting across from her for a while, Neville realized she was not actually reading. Every few seconds she would glance up at Neville's face, then look back down at the magazine. He also noticed that there was too much rustling from the pages for Luna to really be reading. He watched as Luna abruptly closed her _Quibbler_, paying close attention to the piece of parchment that was sticking out of the top the slightest bit.

"Luna, what's that?" His question was answered with a questioning look, so he elaborated. "That piece of parchment sticking out of your magazine. What is it?" Luna blushed as she realized that Neville had seen the parchment she desperately wanted to stay hidden. On the bright side, he still had no idea what was on it.

"Neville, it's… well… here." She held out the drawing to him, and he gasped at her amazing talent. Luna had drawn his portrait, and she had captured everything perfectly. If the sketch was moving, Neville swore that it could be mistaken as a photo.

"Wow, Luna. I honestly don't know what to say. Um… the shading on my sweater is quite good, amazing actually. This is just, indescribable. Thank you."

"Actually, the shading _is_ the best I've ever done. Do you mind if I have that back now, Neville? It's not completely finished yet."

Neville didn't seem to notice anything unfinished about the drawing, but reluctantly gave it back. Luna stashed it in her bag and began to mindlessly tell Neville about someone named Zefron. He didn't mind, in fact, Luna's conversational abilities were something he most admired about her. They were especially interesting to him, as he usually got flustered or embarrassed halfway through most of his conversations.

"Luna, Ginny said that you wanted to tell me something," Neville said quietly when there was a rare pause in their conversation.

"Oh, yes, I did actually. Ginny had said that she noticed you were acting differently, especially around me. I was actually wondering what you thought of me, just to confirm or deny Ginny's suspicions." Neville flushed a bright red at this, but swallowed and started to speak.

"Luna, I fancy you, honestly. I'm not sure what Ginny said, but you need to know how I feel."

"Ginny said exactly that, actually. Apparently I don't notice your changes in behavior as much as I should. She said, well, she said that it was rather obvious that you fancied me."

"Ginny was right, Luna. Now I need to know how you feel." Instead of answering Neville's questions with words, she placed her lips on his in response. _Thank Merlin that Ginny closed the window shade,_ Luna thought as she continued to kiss Neville.

It was just what he had imagined earlier when he was left to his thoughts. It was more than a little unnerving how sometimes it seemed like Luna could read his thoughts, was inside his mind. He had not noticed her shoes and socks on the floor, had not noticed her bare feet folded gracefully underneath her. It was exactly as he had just imagined, stopping in the exact same place as well. Though this time, it was not a mental cock block, it was a physical one. The sudden lurching of the train stopped the disheveled pair dead in their tracks, telling them that they had finally arrived at Hogwarts.

As Luna and Neville stepped out of their compartment, hands intertwined, Neville realized he had left his trunk with Seamus and Dean while Ginny and Luna were talking. With a quick promise to be back soon, Neville sped off to find his way through the rushing student traffic of the quickly emptying Hogwarts Express.

After fighting off a pack of rushing first years, Neville eventually found all of his luggage, and most importantly, Trevor. Now all he needed to find was Luna, and he could walk into the Great Hall as a completely new and completely different man. He would walk through the wooden double doors and head towards the Gryffindor house table for the feast. But today, as he stepped along the stone floor, he would not just be plain old Neville "Schlongbottom". He would be one very important half of Neville and Luna.


	7. Chapter 7

AN- Hey! I just want to say thanks (again) to everyone who reads, reviews, favs, etc. I need help; I honestly check my email like 40 times a day now for reviews. Yeah, I'm strange, but keep all the love coming!

Just wondering- can you upload stories from the pages app for iPad? I'm debating whether to buy it because my computer is so slow. Anyway, enjoy the good old teenage awkwardness.

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 7

Neville wasn't able to find Luna again after he had left to go get his luggage. Neville hadn't exactly told Luna to wait for him in words, but he definitely did say that he would be back soon. This didn't bother him at all, though after that _kiss_ with Luna, it seemed that nothing could be wrong with the world.

That kiss, the feeling of Luna's soft lips on his, her body molded so damn perfectly to his for that one special moment, was like a drug to Neville. It was everything; and it seemed to be far more than enough for him. However, it was realistically not nearly enough to satiate his teenage hormones. Neville's mind was going back and forth constantly in deciding what was right.

Neville, the clumsy forgetful young boy, wanted a meaningful relationship full of love. For the hopeless romantic inside him, not solely surviving on being physical together was something to strive for.

However, the teenager within wanted to become a man, to join the conversations with his roommates about their endless sexual exploits. That Neville wanted a breathless Luna beneath him begging him for more, wanted to feel all of the pleasure and pure want and _lust _for someone_._

Hell, he had imagined Luna and himself in… "compromising" positions many times before. But did that mean he wanted to really go that far so soon? He had never liked Luna for her looks; he had liked her for everything she was inside. Although, Neville had to admit that Luna looked prettier than she normally did as he stared across the Great Hall at the Ravenclaw table. _It's just a little makeup, Neville, wake up!_

After the feast was finished, Neville was pushed by his roommates up to Gryffindor tower and away from Luna. Matched up against four teenage boys, there was absolutely no way for Neville to overpower his captors, or even try to resist them. He went along with them, more curious for what exactly they wanted with him than what they were going to do to him.

They reached the dormitories rather quickly, which was not surprising considering the pace at which Neville was being dragged through the corridors of Hogwarts. Before he was even able to register his surroundings and what the hell was happening, Neville's appendages were tied down to his four-poster bed by four very familiar red and gold neckties.

"Neville, we had actually arranged to have an intervention for you today. However, our plan seems to have changed. Well, we're assuming it has, considering how much time you spent in that compartment with Luna Lovegood on the train ride. _Alone._" Seamus looked down at Neville incredulously, expecting an answer at the least. _Shit, caught._

"Ok, fine, I'll admit it. I promise you that what went on in that compartment was not what you think, but it still remains between me and Luna." Neville hoped that this would be enough of a response to be let free, but he knew that there was little chance of that actually happening.

"So you didn't snog Luna? And damn it, Neville, we've known you for long enough to know you wouldn't go much further." Ron continued where Seamus left off, assuming Neville would find more comfort from him.

"Yes, I did snog her. Will you please untie me now?" Instead of doing as he asked, Neville's roommates replied by patting him on the back and supplying their congratulations.

"Now that you're officially one of us, we would like to inform you of our dormitory rules," Seamus continued. "Rule number one-"

"I know the house rules and your spins on them as well. No alcohol unless there's enough to go around, no girls unless they rate at least an eight point five, and no parties unless the prefects are invited," Neville recited from memory, adding the parts that were most likely added by Fred and George as well as the original rules.

"Not those rules, Neville. Let's just say that you need to inform us twenty-four hours in advance if you and Luna need to _use _the dorm." Harry supplied an abridged and far less graphic version of what Seamus was planning to say, hoping Neville would get what was being implied by the statement. Luckily, the bright blush creeping up on Neville's cheeks made it obvious that he knew exactly Harry had meant by _use._

"O-oh… um… thanks, I'll keep that. In mind, for…um, for that. Future reference, I guess." Trying to alleviate his immense embarrassment as much as they could, Harry and Ron quickly released Neville from his bindings. As soon as he was free, Neville walked down the winding staircase to the common room in an effort to clear his head. On his way down, he heard a voice that sounded strangely like Luna's. _It couldn't be Luna, she's in Ravenclaw._ Although he was usually too polite to eavesdrop, what Luna was saying was impossible not to hear.

"What? What the hell do you want me to say about him? I don't care about him!"

No matter how quietly those few words were said, they pounded through Neville's head like concert music. The words cut through him like knives, shattering his heart into a million miniscule pieces. He had nowhere to run, nowhere to hide from any of his worst fears that were being presented before him.

He could return to the dormitory, and there be faced with all of his peers. Neville had just escaped the insanity of his roommates; he was definitely not going to go back there. And there was absolutely no way anyone would see him like this.

The second option was even worse. Facing Luna and the publicity of the common room, even for a moment, was a horrible idea. Anywhere Neville could go would be reached through there, however, unless he jumped out of a window. In his current state, Neville seriously considered plummeting into the deep snow that covered the grounds.


	8. Chapter 8

AN- So sorry for the delay, I didn't have my computer all weekend. And this chapter was really hard to write, trying to make Luna seem in character but go with the storyline.

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 8

Luna had left Neville on the train. She knew it was wrong instantly, but it wasn't nearly as wrong as what she had done before that.

_Why did I ever listen to Ginny?_ _Now I've lost Neville completely, as a friend and everything more that we could have been. Why couldn't I have realized that I had no feelings for him before we kissed? I really firetrucked this up, now I need to fix it._

She was sure that Neville had overheard her conversation with Ginny and Hermione in the Gryffindor common room. She wasn't sure exactly how much had been heard, but one thing was certain. Neville Longbottom was heartbroken, and it was completely her fault.

Well, in all honesty, if any blame was to be placed it should be placed on Ginny. She had told Luna to kiss Neville, had claimed that it would not hurt either party to explore their feelings for each other. Ginny had caused this mess, albeit unintentionally, but Luna would have to be the one to fix it. And fixing it started with talking to Neville.

As she started to ascend the staircase to the boy's dormitories in search of Neville, Luna ran straight into her problem. Neville sat on the fifth stair from the top, fully dressed except for his bare feet. He had very obviously just been crying.

"Go away Luna," Neville said as soon as he heard footsteps on the staircase.

"No Neville, I was the one who made this mess, now I need to be the one to clean it up. Please, I'm _so_ sorry," Luna pleaded hopelessly as she slowly but surely approached Neville.

"That doesn't fix anything! You did this, you admit it, but you still try to apologize? Leave me alone, I don't need or want your goddamn pity!" Neville seethed at Luna, letting out all of his anger and frustrations in one go. It felt good to finally let it all out, but he still had a tiny pang of regret for yelling at Luna like that.

_Every time I see her, I get these pains in my chest, and I know it's all her fault, that bitch_! Before it was Neville's love… _no. It was never love, and it never will be love. I'll never be happy again, all because of her. _

"Neville Longbottom, you listen to me! I wasn't talking about you downstairs." This caused Neville to look up at Luna for the first time. However, he wasn't completely convinced.

"Oh, really, that wasn't about me? Then who the bloody hell, Luna, were you talking about to Ginny and Hermione downstairs?"

"Seamus. They… Ginny and Hermione seem to think that I fancy him. Neville please let me make this up to you. Will you please join me in Hogsmeade this weekend?"

"I would love to, Luna. I-I'm sorry, I really overreacted about this." Neville smiled up at Luna before rising from the stair, passionately but quickly kissing her goodnight, and retreating to his dormitory.

_Now I've really done it. He needs to hear the truth, and now he's just more in love than he was before. I need to tell him how I really feel when we go to Hogsmeade. I need to end this before it gets too far, before he gets his hopes up too high. After Hogsmeade I _will_ tell Neville, definitely._

"So you're not going to be telling Neville the truth anytime soon, are you Luna?" Ginny asked as she ascended the staircase to meet Luna, who was deep in thought.

"Oh, Ginny, it's you. Well, I can't just tell him… I mean…"

"Bullshit. Luna, if aren't going up to tell him right now, I will. Neville deserves so much more than what you're giving to him."

"Ginny, I just told him that I was talking about Seamus. I can't just go up there and tell him that I've lied, I need to fix this. It's just a little white lie." Luna was desperately searching for some good excuse for her reasoning, but found none. _What had happened over break to make me like this? It's like I'm a completely different person now._

"Telling Neville the truth is the only way to fix anything, I promise. The longer you let this lie go on, the worse it's going to get." Luna could not be swayed by Ginny's reasoning, even though it was a thousand times better than her own.

"I'll tell him in Hogsmeade, honestly I will."

"That's not nearly soon enough. Think of it this way, the sooner you tell Neville and the sooner you get this off your chest." Ginny was as persistent as Luna in her beliefs. This argument could go on forever.

"Ginny, I'll tell him when the time is right. Good night," Luna turned to leave, but was blocked by Ginny. The only way to go was up, but going up the stairs meant going towards Neville and the imminent truth that came with seeing him.

"There is no better time than the present for telling people the truth, Luna. Georgia Byng said so." Ginny knew she had obviously misquoted the famous saying, but the altered version fit Luna's unique situation much better than the original did.

"There is no time like the present, Ginny, but good try. Now I have to be going back to Ravenclaw tower before Filch, or worse, Mrs. Norris, catches me in the corridors." Ginny did not let up on her blockage of the stairs, even with knowing very well the consequences of being out of bed after hours.

"Luna, I really don't want to have to resort to extreme measures," Ginny looked rather devious in the low light, her ginger hair flaming while she looked down at her wand and stroking it rather affectionately. "But I will. Go tell Neville the truth-"

"_Petrificus totalus!_ Sorry, Ginny, no other choice, really. Now I have to be going to bed, good night." Luna awkwardly sidestepped around an immobile Ginny. While she couldn't move her body, Ginny was still able to harshly glare at Luna as she passed.


	9. Chapter 9

AN-Curse you Comcast and/or Xfinity! My internet is… uncooperative to say the least. Reviews are love, I less than three them all!

P.S. Draco is back!

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 9

Ron was in a horrible mood as he stalked towards the Great Hall for breakfast, anyone could clearly see that. Most chose to ignore him, but for any tormenting Slytherin, this was a golden opportunity for harassment.

"You and your girlfriend have another row, weasel?" The drawling voice behind the question was obviously asking for trouble, and the two boys knew all too well that Ron and his damned Weasley temper would deliver just that.

On a good day, Draco Malfoy was an awful, despicable human being. When he got that small devilish glimmer in his eye, Draco turned from bad to a goddamn nightmare. It was his copyright of sorts, showing that his rightful place was in Slytherin house just as much as his pure-blood status did.

As soon as Ron had swung his right fist at full speed, it was caught in the waiting hand of Draco Malfoy.

"You are not permitted to touch. You filthy blood traitor." Each word was punctuated with a twist of the wrist, putting Ron in a position where he could in no way fight back. "You always have been, and you always will be, a butt trumpet. You are just a lollygagging ginger with no one but his stupid mudblood girlfriend."

As soon as Draco had finished, he was punched straight in the stomach, hard, by none other than Neville Longbottom.

"I'm worth five of you Malfoy. We all are. There's more heart in one Gryffindor than in all of Slytherin house. Now get up and leave us alone." Draco looked genuinely scared for his life as he scrambled to get up off of the floor.

"Ok… Schlongbottom." The horrible nickname given to Neville so many years ago by Crabbe and Goyle was said softly, but it was just loud enough for the two Gryffindors to know that Draco Malfoy would never give up his childish bullying.

"All that stuff about Hermione being my girlfriend, that's not even a little bit true. Thank you, Neville, really. I have no idea what I would've done if you weren't here. Shit, my wrist hurts like hell."

"You're welcome," Neville replied simply as the boys walked in the Great Hall, which was already loud and bustling with students excited about the Hogsmeade trip.

As Neville sat down, he stole a glance over at the Ravenclaw table in search of Luna. He could not find her anywhere, despite studying the table and all of its residents at least four times. He decided to just give up and eat some breakfast, as he was meeting Luna soon enough to go to Hogsmeade with her.

_If you see him before Hogsmeade, it'll take away all the confidence. All of the prepping for this moment that you've done, the reason you didn't sleep a wink last night. This is right. This is right, right? Yes, Luna, get yourself together. You need to tell him, he deserves that much. I am a horrible person, oh my Rowling._

Neville didn't ask Luna why she hadn't been at breakfast that morning. _She probably just overslept or something like that,_ he thought. It seemed to be a very trivial issue, because what mattered so much more was that Luna had asked him to go to Hogsmeade with her. Him; clumsy, stupid, bumbling Neville "Schlongbottom", he simply could not believe anyone would like him at all, let alone as anything more than a friend.

As Neville turned to enter the Three Broomsticks like he always did, Luna suddenly stopped him.

"I have a special little place I'd like to show you, Neville. Follow me." _Yes, somewhere quieter and far less public would be better for this. Oh, Neville, I'm so sorry for everything, all of the trouble I've caused you because of this, I hope you can find in it your heart to forgive me._

Luna desperately hoped that Neville could somehow hear her thoughts. She wished that he could somehow understand her silent plea for forgiveness, not force her to say what she needed to. She knew it was useless, as there was no way Neville was trained in legilimency. Even if he was, it was extremely possible that he would not be able to read her mind anyway. _Well, scratch that idea of the very short list of possible alternate plans. Plan A it is, I guess there's just no other option now. _

The pair had reached their destination within five minutes. _Less time for me to think_, Luna thought. It was truly beautiful, even the snow on the ground. The snow looked almost as if it hadn't fallen from the sky, it looked so purposeful and comfortable and soft laying there.

Lying on top of that was a blanket the exact color of Luna's eyes. It captured that wonderful hue that Neville could never hope to describe, no matter how hard he tried. Luna's eyes were sometimes only blue, green, or gray, but most of the time they were the most amazing combination of those three colors and many more. Above that, sprinkled among the evergreens, were tiny twinkling lights that changed colors every few seconds, and it was unusually warm considering the temperature in Hogsmeade.

"Wow, Luna. It's… absolutely gorgeous. Is it always like this, or-"

"Yes, I come here every time we have a Hogsmeade trip. It's a very calming place." The two teenagers continued to talk for hours, chatting endlessly about everything and anything, yet nothing at all at the same time.

This was the part of Neville and Luna's relationship that was truly magical, for lack of a better word. While Neville was a bumbling, stuttering mess when he tried to talk to most people, he could always be comfortable with Luna. And while most people ended conversations with Luna when she started to talk about something odd or seemingly imaginary, she could always count on Neville to give her his complete and full attention.

Luna never told Neville that day. He looked so perfectly and genuinely happy; a look that rarely crossed his face these days. There was absolutely no way that Luna could take that sense of joy away from anyone, especially her best friend. _When he's ready,_ she thought to herself. _But will he ever be?_


	10. Chapter 10

AN- There's an awkward moment when you fish for reviews by promising people cookies that they will never receive… I apologize for anyone who was expecting a cookie from me. Anyway, review please!

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 10

Neville had absolutely no idea how in the world Seamus Finnegan had managed to sneak firewhiskey into the Gryffindor common room, and he wasn't alone. No one could figure it out, but most were too drunk to even try to speak, let alone do anything more complex than that. However, Seamus's explanation for the incredibly immoral, and more importantly, illegal alcohol was rather simple and not helpful in the least.

"I'm Irish. It's St. Patty's day. Let's just leave it at that for your explanation, enjoy the party and stop being such a damn stick in the mud, Longbottom." That was the response that Neville had received. Or, when speaking to someone he didn't particularly like or want to have a conversation with, "It's a party, please just go ahead and have a drink already."

_This is most definitely why Gryffindor house is known for its parties,_ Neville thought as he sat down an armchair in front of the fireplace. As he looked all around the usually reasonably under-control common room, he noticed that tonight it was as far away from controlled as anything could possibly be.

Quite a few students that Neville didn't care to watch or even recognize were glued together at the mouth on the couch beside his chair, and Lavender Brown was dancing on top of one of the chess tables. Though he saw almost the entire school in the common room, besides any Slytherins, of course, he could not for the life of him find Luna. _Figures, the only person I want to be here isn't here._ As if on some sort of twisted cue, he hears Luna's slurring, stuttering, severely alcohol affected voice.

"Pigfarts it i-is real, you k-know. It really, it really honestly, is, like a whole lot of some super-duper really true truth. IT IS REAL! A-and if you're a, if you are g-good, a good enough s-student, t-then Rumbleroar, he lets you, he lets you, ride a-around on his back. Because he's a lion, a lion, and he can talk, he's a lion who can talk. Pigfarts, Pigfarts, here I come. Pigfarts, Pigfarts, yum yum yum." _Oh my Rowling, Luna is absolutely hammered._

However, Luna was far from the only Hogwarts student who was far too drunk to walk or even form coherent words that night. A little ways away from where Luna was standing, none other than Harry Potter himself was as smashed as his loony Ravenclaw companion.

"I c-can't defeat thee, so please don't eat me! Dragon, come on dragon, please will you just level with me buddy? I'm Harry freaking Potter! You don't understand I'm a legend man, to all of you. Everyone, I-I defeated the dark lord when I just was a baby, and I only have this little scar. He tried to kill me, but I was so damn awesome as a tiny little boy that he couldn't! Isn't that hilarious, Ron, it is really just so funny. I am just the funniest person ever, right; I know that I am so do not even try to try to start to argue with me right now."

Luckily, well lucky for Neville anyways, Ron had decided have at least half of a brain and abstain from the St. Patrick's Day _festivities. _Well, in all honesty, they really could not be classified as festivities. They could, however, be classified as one giant teenage hormone driven, drunken mess of what Neville assumed was supposed to be a celebration of some sort at one point in time.

_I really should have gone with Hermione to the library tonight; this is getting to be too much to stand._ In all honesty, Neville knew that he would be the only one sober at this particular event, especially because Hermione had chosen not to attend for some reason.

However, he didn't know or expect the sheer amount of alcohol his classmates could consume in one period of… _How long has it been since this horrid thing started? An _hour_, is that really it? _It was truly amazing to see how drunk a group of students, especially students with far too much access to booze and containing extreme levels of boredom, could get in the space of one hour.

Though Neville had only been in the common room for an hour, nothing compared to the nearly five hours a night he had spent in the very same room studying for all of his final exams last year, he had definitely had enough of Seamus's little "party".

Slowly ascending from the squishy armchair he had been occupying for a good part of the celebration, Neville pushed through the throngs of people filling Gryffindor tower. Trying too hard not to knock anyone over who wasn't falling over by themselves on his way, he slowly walked in the direction of the stairs that led to the dormitories. Although Neville didn't notice Luna looking his way, she saw that he was going upstairs. Against her better judgment, _but everyone does seem to believe that I'm too drunk to think_, Luna followed him up the stairwell.

Neville wasn't planning on turning around, as he _was_ leaving. However, he just barely picked up Seamus's voice over the sound of the blazing music, and what he said simply couldn't be ignored by anyone, much less the subject of the horrible statement.

"Use protection, Longbottom. Wouldn't want anything too bad to happen to our little Luna, now would we?" Many years of terrible bullying, most of it by one Draco Malfoy, had taught Neville to ignore the derogatory comments he and his friends received on an almost daily basis. So, as was so natural to him by now, Neville just walked up the stairs and away from his tormentors, who were unfortunately also his roommates.

When he arrived and promptly lay down on his back on his four-poster bed, he heard Luna shut the door behind her and slowly begin to walk towards him.

"Neville, hey Neville, guess what?"

"What do you want Luna?" He hadn't meant to be rude, but he knew all too well that Luna wouldn't remember any part of this conversation tomorrow.

"Neville, I lied to you. I need to tell you the truth."

"Luna, you're drunk. You have no idea what you're saying right now," he said with a lot of certainty, remembering the state of her speech a few minutes ago.

"I'm not drunk; don't you know me at all Neville? I was faking it; honestly, all I had to drink all night was pumpkin juice." Suddenly it occurred to him that Luna had not slurred or repeated herself at all since she had come upstairs with him.

"You deserve to know, and you deserved to know right away. I lied to you, and I never should have kissed you, I should have never let you believe that I wanted to be more than friends."

Now it was Neville's turn to stutter. "W-w-what?"


	11. Chapter 11

AN- My area is on hurricane warning, flood watch, severe weather alert, and under a mandatory evacuation, etc. I might not have power for a while, worst case scenario, _really_ hoping that doesn't happen. Just an fyi in case I don't update soon. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 11

Neville eventually forgave Luna. The couple tried dating each other once or twice between their famous fight of St. Patrick's Day and the end of that school year. It never seemed to work out all that well, having an on-and-off relationship with your best friend.

Their relationship, whether it was platonic or not at the time no one knew, became even more strained when things started to change at Hogwarts. Everyone could feel a change in the air that year. It was still, the calm before the storm that was becoming more and more inevitable as time passed, despite the efforts of Dumbledore's Army.

Of course, everyone felt the constant underlying feeling of danger. They knew all too well that they could die at any given moment by any of the Death Eaters with the job title of "disciplinarian". Even though the war made people desperate to save themselves, save their families and loved ones, it brought the refugee students of Hogwarts even closer together. Luna was trusted to take care of all of Neville's wounds from the Carrows, and in return he took care of hers. Luna had a much harder job than Neville did.

"Not again, Neville, oh my Rowling. You need to just keep quiet; your blood status is not going to keep you alive for much longer." Luna was disheveled herself, her long blond curls tied up messily in a bun at the nape of her neck and several bruises and cuts still healing on her shoulders, face, chest, and neck. But her small injuries were nothing next to Neville's. He too often took the punishment of others, knowing that the Carrows wanted to spill as little pure blood as possible.

Luna examined him, taking in the slashes that almost completely covered the left side of his face and extended down his neck. "Neville, please tell me that there's nothing more than what I can see."

"I would absolutely love to, Luna, but then I would be lying to you." Luna shook her head, disgusted at the new forms of "punishment" that had become almost normal at Hogwarts. Neville pulled off his sweater, revealing a rather blood stained white button down shirt. He moved to unbutton it, but suddenly winced as he moved his arms.

"Stop, please let me do it. I don't want you to hurt yourself." Luna walked around to the front of Neville and started to carefully open his shirt, not wanting him to be hurt any more than he was already. The sight she was met with when the shirt was finally opened made her gasp.

Neville's now exposed back and chest were spattered with dried blood and long gashes. It looked as if someone had lashed at his skin with a whip. How could they do this? "Neville," Luna whimpered, a single tear escaping from her eyes and falling down her cheek. "How could they do this to you, how could they… it's a wonder that you're even alive at this point."

"I'm fine; I'm used to all of this by now. And better me than some first year, right?" His mask of bravado was slowly cracking as the days dragged on and on. Everyone was hurt, everyone was broken, so close to just giving up and giving in. "Besides, it's not any worse than Umbridge's love hand thing. That was absolutely horrid."

"Neville, we really need to be serious now. Here, just eat a redvine, I'll heal you." Luna started to wave her wand, mumbling spells under her breath and watching Neville's wounds seem to stitch themselves together until there was only a hint of a scar left to mar his flesh.

"Thanks, Luna, I feel so much better already. Redvines, what the hell can't they do?" Neville joked, laughing as he ate the licorice.

"It does seem that candy is no match for my measly sixth year magical abilities," Luna answered with the first smile she had displayed in what had seemed like years. "Well, while I'm fixing you up, is there anything other injuries you're not telling me about?"

"I'm not even sure, to be honest. I think I might have blacked out once or twice while Amycus was torturing me. Oops, I mean, punishing me rightly for stepping too far out of line," Neville said with contempt as he repeated what was heard by everyone who broke one of the seemingly endless amount of newly established rules.

"We might as well look while we're here, before anything gets worse than it already is." Soon enough, Neville was standing in the Room of Requirement clad only in his boxers. Luna visibly shuddered as she looked at the gashes on his legs; they were almost identical to the ones that had covered his chest just a few minutes ago.

"That's sort of bad," Neville said blankly as he saw what had actually been done to his body for the first time.

"Oh my Rowling," Luna answered as she slowly lowered herself to her knees and began mumbling the therapeutic spells once again. It took her almost three times as long as it usually did to perform the magic that always was so simple to her. Luna was in a state of shock, not only because of the severity of the "punishment" that Neville had received. Everything seemed suddenly much more real, made it all too clear that the war was here, and that the Room of Requirement could no longer protect them from the outside world.

They would all have to fight eventually, and some would even have to die for the cause. She hoped, wished, and needed Neville to survive. He was the figurative man of the house now with Ron and Harry gone, helping her and Ginny to restart the DA, and making a home for all of them and many more here in the Room of Requirement. Luna was so lost in her thought and work; she didn't notice that anyone had entered the previously empty room until she heard the voice.

"Neville, Luna? You two, um… I'll just be going now, carry on." Dean rushed out of the room as quickly as possible, leaving Luna and Neville to realize what the situation looked like to innocent passerby. Luna quickly stood up, handing Neville his discarded clothing. Luna internally cursed herself for not having noticed earlier that Neville was nearly naked and directly in front of her.


	12. Chapter 12

AN- My area sort of lucked out with the storm, nothing really happened. But I still had to evacuate, and did not have my computer with me. This will probably be the last chapter, but I'm not really sure yet because there might be an epilogue type thing after. Anyway, enjoy!

How It Was Supposed To Be

Chapter 12

Thank dead God that Seamus had a detention that ran longer than Neville's had that day. Both Luna and Neville knew that they'd never live their… seemingly less than school-appropriate position down. Even though what had actually happened in the Room of Requirement was nothing close to what any innocent person would have thought, Seamus had a way of making a stupid rumor blow up in an instant. However, Dean was the polar opposite. He would never let a word of the incident slip, and for that Neville and Luna were incredibly grateful.

Even if Seamus wasn't around, the couple still had to be incredibly careful. Most of the time, the Death Eaters used loved ones as a bait of sorts, it was their second choice to torture, but just as effective as revealing answers through the cruciatus curse.

Neville knew far too well the feeling of losing someone, or in his case, more than one someone, close to him at the hands of Death Eaters. However more difficult living without parents made Neville's life; it also turned out to be one of his biggest motivators. Defensive spells came so much easier to Neville when he pictured how they could be used to finally defeat Bellatrix Lestrange and, more importantly, avenge his parents and finish what they had started so many years ago.

The whole war was sort of funny, in the strangest of ways. It had forced Neville to become a man and show the world that he truly did deserve his place in Gryffindor house. He did just that, by restarting Dumbledore's Army with Ginny and Luna, by finding and using the Room of Requirement as a headquarters, and by creating a safe haven among all the chaos and terror that constantly was looming over Hogwarts. Not only had the need for someone who could be a true leader brought out a completely new side of Neville, it had also pushed forward someone his Gran could truly, finally, be proud of. For the first time in Neville's life, he didn't feel so alone.

"You're not alone. We are all in this together, and Voldemort is going down. Hogwarts is our home, and we _will_ fight and defend it to the very end." Luna's motivational speech at the start of the DA meeting that day might have seemed a little bit too hopeful, but that was just how Luna was. She saw the best in everyone and in everything; she knew somehow that there would always be some sort of light at the end of the tunnel, no matter how dim it may be.

"Now watch me very closely, and _confringo!_" As soon has she had spoken the spell, a jet of brilliant flame had erupted from her wand, setting the cloth practice dummy directly across the room aflame. Ginny stood by with her wand, almost immediately uttering _aguamenti_ and extinguishing the flame that Luna had started only seconds earlier.

"Shit, _augamenti, augamenti, _shit!" Seamus flapped his pant leg rapidly, panicking at the small flame that seemed to have magically appeared there.

"_Augamenti,_" Ginny said casually, as if she were discussing the weather instead of saving a particularly idiotic seventh year from being badly scorched. "Seamus Finnegan, can you possibly go on for five seconds without setting something on fire? You're a safety hazard to all of us."

"And it won't be much help if you're running around on fire while we all try to fight off Death Eaters," Neville added.

"Sorry Ginny, and don't act like you haven't had your share of messes, Longbottom. You nearly got Harry expelled first year because you couldn't figure out how to ride a broomstick."

"Harry became the youngest seeker in a century because of that, may I remind you. Also because of me we beat Slytherin for the house cup first year, while you were busy blowing up feathers in Charms." Neville retorted, finally reaching the breaking point of his patience.

"Neville, he gets it, please just relax," Luna pleaded, trying her hardest to break up the fight that was obviously approaching at the speed of a freight train.

"You heard your girlfriend Longbottom, relax," Seamus was really asking for it now, and both boys knew it. Neville stood his ground, no longer the scared, bumbling little boy that he had once been.

Neville's mind automatically flashed to Dumbledore's speech at the final feast of his first year at Hogwarts. It was a fuzzy memory, having taken place so many long years ago. However, he remembered the feeling of accomplishment and pure joy, of having a place where he was wanted and possibly even needed. _It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but even more to stand up to your friends._

The problem was that Seamus was neither friend nor foe. He most often tottered somewhere in the middle of the two options, only occasionally leaning more towards one side or the other. But there was never one true or clear answer, and Neville would under no circumstances use the clichéd teenage girl term of _frenemy _to describe the relationship that he and Seamus shared.

Just as Neville was about to leave, the portrait of Ariana appeared in the normally empty picture frame on the wall. She told Neville that it was incredibly important, and that he needed to come see Aberforth immediately. So, with one last fleeting look at all of his classmates, he set off down the tunnel.

Everyone was shocked and overjoyed, to say the least, when he emerged from the passageway a short time later with Harry, Ron, and Hermione in tow. Everyone cheered noisily as they entered, for Harry Potter had become the sole symbol of hope in this war. He was the boy who lived, the chosen one; the only one with the power to defeat Voldemort, Harry was simply everything.

And so they fought, and the war was won. The injured had been treated, the dead had been mourned, and loved ones were together at last.

"I'm so glad Ron and Hermione finally realized their feelings for each other," Luna said as she sat down next to Neville.

"Took them long enough," Neville said, laughing.

"What about us?" Luna asked quietly.

"I don't know, Luna, what do you think?" Neville honestly had no idea what would happen between them after he left Hogwarts.

"This, this is how it's supposed to be. Just like now, just the way we are."

"I could not agree more. Now, would you like a delicious redvine?" Neville asked with a mad smile plastered across his face.

"I would absolutely love one."


End file.
